Hearth
Hearth is the 11th level in Dungeon Keeper. Hearth is a Tower Defense map. The Heroes from the world above mean business, and they seem to have your pre-built dungeon surrounded. Minions need to be managed with speed and care to be kept alive here. The structure of the match is this: within 90 seconds or so, Hero Parties will steadily enter from all four sides and attack. There is a long first wave of low-grade parties, dangerous through numbers, followed by a short breather and a final showdown against the Lord of the Land (Earl JasonPrima's Official Guide To Dungeon Keeper Gold Edition. p. 182. Prima Publishing. 1998. ISBN 978-0-7615-1581-4.) and his allies. __TOC__ Breakdown * Portal Speed: 400 Turns * Creature Pool: :: * Specials ::Increase Level x2 - trapped room, west exit ::Increase Level - water, northwest ::Resurrect Creature - water, northeast ::Resurrect Creature - water, southeast ::Transfer Creature - water, southwest * Heroes ::See next section Events The opposition in Hearth comes entirely through scripted events (extensive references to in-game Turns, time units which run 18-20 per second, follow). At the start, a hidden clock begins ticking, and will trigger the release of the following Hero Parties bent on attacking the dungeon. First Wave Second Wave The moment the heroes above have been vanquished, you are sent a congratulatory message, and another hidden timer begins ticking. When 3000 turns have elapsed, the break is over, a new message comes up expressing hopes that you aren't AFK, and the following three unique Hero Parties warp in. Strategy This section attempts to cover some points of interest without railroading any one strategy. The gist of this match is easy enough to summarize: keep an eye on the overhead map while moving and micromanaging your creatures, constantly. There is not much in the way of expansion to do with a pre-fab dungeon nestled in Impenetrable Rock. But the creatures need to train, defend, and recover, getting from one job to another correctly and quickly. The s usually need babysitting as well. ;Money :Every Hero that enters this realm is carrying 1500 cash on his person, which is dropped on death. One might not need to create more Imps beyond the first four because of this. Claiming all dirt and territory is highly recommended; Imps' job AI prevents them carting random gold pots to the until all accessible territory is claimed. ;Transferred Creature :A top transfer, say, from Moonbrush Wood where we had our pick of both Good and Evil-aligned minions, will be able to handle one front at a time; your ordinary minions on this level will basically fill in the gaps as manufacturers and reserve-fighters. A great crutch for anyone either unable or unwilling to deal with the initial struggle for survival. ;Increase Levels :Make a point of visiting the small cave outside the training room, perhaps by possessing an expendable creature like a to knock down its door and trigger the . A third Increase Level is in fairly easy reach. Tunnel out to the water from the and build a to capture it. ;Bile Demons :Loading the with s is a solid approach to any level. A handful of 4's and 5's can handle everything here. ;Orcs : are, most unusually, pre-researched here. It may be useful to immediately lay a slab to attract some s. They don't need micromanagement on this level. They train by default, hit hard in a fight, and when injured, they retreat and heal in the ... and then get back to training. ;Dragons :Controversial creatures: very tough, but expensive on this impoverished map and unable to deal much damage. To switch them on and off at the portal, sell 1 Treasure slab. ;Workshop :This room warrants a decision. The default 5x5 products are nothing to write home about, and if you do not intend to use the Workshop, it can be sold, possibly for more training space. Expanding the Workshop instead allows creation of very powerful equipment, which can hold parties off for a very long time ( ), halt them indefinitely ( ), or slay them outright ( ). The catch is that they take a long time to produce and deployment can expose your Imps to danger. Messages ;Briefing Text :"If lands had legs this one would be on its knees. Its desperate inhabitants are preparing a full scale attack on your dungeon. It will be an ideal opportunity to practise unspeakable evil on a massive scale. Go for it, master." These two messages are triggered in this realm despite previous availability of the items. :;Chicken spell is researched ::"You have discovered a devastating magical power. Target it against a creature to transform a fearsome monster into a clucking chicken. Marvellous. :;A Magic Door is produced ::"You have created a Magic Door. These are almost impregnable to all but magical attacks. I recommend sealing off your Treasure Room or Dungeon Heart." ;First waves defeated, new timer starts :"Your annihilation of the first wave has met with the approval of a pack of demons from the fifth plane of hell. Train your creatures and prepare for another battle. You're attracting quite an audience." :(This message erroneously suggests that you receive new creatures.) ;Final wave arrives :"The enemy are upon us. I'm just telling you in case you were having a doze." ;Player defeats Lord of the Land :"All the heroes are dead, which is as it should be. This land and all its spoils are yours. May I suggest that you waste everything?" Sound Bytes Trivia *This realm's outtro speech file, BAD11.WAV, makes more sense if renamed to BAD10.WAV to correspond with Nevergrim. Snuggledell's outro file, BAD06.WAV (Ruiniana), makes more sense renamed to 11 to match up with Hearth. These files are in the game subdirectory \SOUND\ATLAS\. :: *The names for this level in other languages are as follows: Mondoult-Fouailler | row2 = Italian Città Del Focolare | row3 = German Heimathof Titisee | row4 = Dutch Haardstede | row5 = Polish Zacisze | row6 = Czech Srdce | row7 = Swedish HEMHÄRDA | row8 = Russian Харт | row9 = Japanese ハース | row10 = Chinese 家庭至上 / 家居郡 }} Other versions 15 May 1997 Prototype A prototype version of this level (modified 15 May 1997; the final version was modified 7 June 1997) has some significant differences: The prototype version lacks the extra rooms, leaving you with little room to expand your dungeon. There is also no path to the water, meaning the only way to it is through the Gold Seams. There are also fewer doors (and no traps) pre-built at the start, which also means that some rooms have a slightly decreased efficiency. Other differences include: *In the southwest corner is an Increase Level instead of a Transfer Creature. *You can attract (there are 20 in the Creature Pool). * s and s are available to manufacture in the . *The , , and are not pre-researched at the start. *Most of the hero parties carry much less Gold. *Many of the hero parties spawn a little earlier. *This version of the level uses the snowy textures: KeeperFX The KeeperFX version of this level removes your ability to create s, s, and s, but reintroduces the ability to create s. References